ColumbusSports.com : Your place to stay informed and talk about the sports scene and sports teams in and around Columbus.

Is NASCAR the next destination for Danicamania? Rumors have it that the 27 year old Indy Car driver will race a JR Motorsports Chevy running 12-13 races in the Nationwide Series. JR Motorsports is owned by fan favorite Dale Earnhardt Jr., and cars, engines, and tech support are provided by the Rick Hendricks organization.

Danica Patrick has supposedly signed a 3 year extension to continue racing for AGR in the Indy Car series, but with only 17 Indy Car races spread over 8 months, she does have an opportunity to run NASCAR as well. Drivers such as Juan Pablo Montoya have warned against driving vastly different cars during the season, but Patrick appears set on attempting to do just that.

So, is it good for the sport? Yes, with reservations. I don’t like the incredible amount of hype surrounding Danica, but I think any effort to diversify the sport is a plus. Danica has a huge fan base that would follow her to NASCAR. Go Daddy would be the likely sponsor of a Patrick NASCAR effort, so the effort would be well-funded, unlike other efforts made in the past by Patty Moise and Shawna Robinson.  

However, there is no way Patrick can live up to the hoopla, even running Hendrick equipment. The learning curve from open wheel to stock cars is simply too great. So, will the media and fans become discouraged if Danica doesn’t win?  Probably not. Patrick has only won one Indy Car race and remains a fan and media favorite,  so I don’t think not winning immediately in NASCAR will have terrible consequences. Some people question her talent, but anyone who can steer a race car around a track at speeds of over 200 mph has some talent. How much talent Patrick possesses in relation to other drivers is a question that remains to be answered.

Despite its MANY failings, NASCAR is still the place to be in American motorsports, and should be a goal of Patrick’s. I hope she reaches her goal. I hope that other women drivers can benefit from her success. Actually I hope that women drivers can be provided the resources they need to compete at all levels of racing, from NASCAR to sprint cars to modifieds to hobby stocks at Saturday night tracks. And, I hope they don’t have to be a Sports Illustrated swim suit model like Danica Patrick to reach their racing goals. There are some women drivers with talent and they deserve a shot at achieving their racing goals too.

Thanks for stopping by.

Tags: dale earnhardt jr., danica patrick, nascar, nascar nationwide series